that needs to change. america is better than. this and i hoechst my friends on the right are better than tattoo. all right. that's enough for tonight. that's it for tonight's show. i hope everyone has a great weekend, including you, bill. thanks for watching. i'm al sharpton. "hardball" starts right now. >> eve of destruction. let's play "hardball." good evening. i'm michael south america connish -- i'm michael smerconish. leading off tonight, hope or hopeless? despite a litany of challenges facing republicans, party leaders put on a brave face at this week's summer meetings in boston. their mission is a clear one, rally the party around the theme that worked well for democrats

in 2008. that would be hope. >> what we have to do in a sense is be a party of optimism and hope. i think part of what we have to do in the era of president obama's disasterer is we have to get beyond being anti-obama, and we have to reconvince people you can have hope in america, that we can have a better future. >> hope for republicans nationally is what the party clings to because at the moment it's all they've got. that much is evident if you read politico this morning which reported that the republican establishment sees the party on the national level as veering toward destruction. they report that, quote, it's almost impossible to find an establishment republican in town that is not downright morose about the 2013 that has been and is about to be. they see this year as a disaster in the making even if most elected republicans don't know the it or admit it, the party's wounds are many and they're all self-inflicted.

threats of government shutdown and debt default have all ended hopes of proving that republicans are not insane when it comes to governing. thanks to out of mainstream reactions on issues like immigration, voting rights, marriage equality and women's rights, republicans have done an excellent job of alienating an array of voting blocs they promised to court after the 2012 elections. hispanics, blacks, gays and women. and thanks to hyper partisan districts, republicans have less to fear locally especially when it comes to their control of the house. nationally, it's a different story. jonathan allen is the senior washington correspondent with politico. sam stein is an msnbc contributor with ""huffington post"." jonathan, that piece created quite a buzz today. i said to myself what's on the verge of extinction really is the establishment of the republican party. >> that's right, michael. my colleagues jim vandehei and mike allen did a very good job i think today of reporting the really as they put it more rose morose mood among the establishment in washington. you've got a couple of factors here. number one, the social issue set in which the republican party

has essentially alienated a lot of voters whether you're talking about hispanic voters, black voter, female voters. and then on the sort of basic issues of governance, you have a party that is threatening to shut down the government so that it can defund obama care. the establishment doesn't like that. certainly a lot of voices in the party want to see it or just shut down the government for the purpose of shutting down on the government or let the nation default on its debt. any of those outcomes are horror for the governance model that i think your traditional establishment republicans want to see. >> but sam, this might not be evident in 2014 because all politics are local, and in those hyper partisan districts, the republicans could have a very good year and give them a false sense of bravado in 2014. >> these are the dueling tensions inside the republican party. you have a bunch of house republicans very attuned to the political whims of their own districts and whose whims are very much much different than the party probably needs on the national level. what might be a good strategy

for 2014 or status quo strategy for 2014 could really end up blowing in the republican party's face in 2016. >> chris christie had the strong words for his colleagues yesterday at the summer meeting in boston. in direct reference to louisiana's he governor bobby jindal who called the party stupid, christie said i am not going to come and call you the stupid party. the election is over and we need to move on. and then he added, see, i'm in this business to win. i don't know why you're in it. i'm in this to win. for our ideas to matter, we have to win because if we don't win, we don't governor. if we don't govern, all we do is shout into the wind. jonathan, he's absolutely right. this has gotten lost over the last several years i think on both sides of the aisle. the sole purpose of political parties is to deliver election victories, not to be ideological vessels. >> right. he is saying look, go have an argument, have an ideological debate, write about it in journals, talk about it in schools, that's fine.

but let's put together a winning coalition to put republicans back in power so they can implement some of the policies they want to. this is very much an echo of what bill clinton was saying to the democrats in the early 1990s after a couple of decades of liberal excess. of fighting in the party on the fringes of that ideology. it's something that was successful for him. and hey, if you're chris christie, this is your only option is to make the argument that you're best suited to win, and it's about winning, not about ideology. but of course chris christie is not where the rest of the republican party is idealogically. >> sam, i think he's trying to define the race already in these terms. the question is, is that a message that will get outside that room of national committee people because his chief impediment to capturing the gop nomination is the nature of the primary process. we all know the type of candidates who are being nominated these days in gop primaries. >> well, you know, i think the issue is a bit more complex than chris christie gives it credit for. you know, in many respects idealogically, the republican party has one. they turned a debate over how to

stimulate the economy in 2009 and 2010 into what the proper role of deficit reduction would be. the problem with the republican party has and has faced is when do you claim victory. so back in 2011, there was a broad deficit and debt reduction plan presented too them that they could have said yes to and claimed victory. they couldn't get to the yes. i think what will chris christie misses is that in many respects, the conversation has changed because of the 2010 elections. it's just the republican party is not willing to claim victory yet. >> let me give you an illustration what i'm talking about because it's from the garden state. there seems to be a lack of quality control in the republican party when it comes to candidates. just look at new jersey. a state that republicans have eyed for a long time. this is the candidate than that primary voters have chosen to run against cory booker in the state's special election for senate. his name is steve lonegan. here is what he stands for. he opposes marriage equality. if you couldn't tell from that photograph we just showed, he is against gun control. he's anti-abortion even in cases of rape and incest. he wants to dismantle the irs.

he is a hard-liner on immigration, and he wants to make english the official language, and he rejects climate change. as a matter of fact, a recent buzzfeed profile of lon began summarized it like this. he called social security a ponzi scheme, advocates for the destruction of medicare and medicaid, denounces spanish language advertisements as racial profiling marketing, and describes cory booker, his new opponent in the new jersey senate election as a socialist who just can't wait to pull the race card. now, many people may agree with those positions, but they're unlikely to get you elected in very blue new jersey. so sam, how can the republican party take control of this primary process and stop the christine o'donnells and the akins and the mourdocks and the lon begans from otherwise blowing respectable opportunities? >> first of all, that photo wasn't subtle, as you probably pointed out, surrounded by guns. secondly, this is the sort of existential for people working on the senate race. how do you weigh in on primaries in a way that gets you electable candidates. and the irony here is the more

the national party weighs in to push more electable candidates, the more likely it will be used against them. tea party candidates will say look, these are the people in washington trying to come down and choose your candidates. if we just run a pure conservative, we'll win. well, that doesn't always work. there is an argument to be made that the republican party could have very close if not a majority in the senate right now had they just ran more electable candidates. >> well, jonathan, i couldn't help but think of the race going on in his home state when i read what chris christie had said, because the lon began race is exhibit a of a race that they're not going to win. >> absolutely. >> i don't know how credible a candidate they could have fielded against cory booker anyway. christie himself didn't want his name appearing on the same ballot as cory booker, and spent state money just to make sure that wasn't going to happen. >> that's right. you may be able to see behind me in washington, cory booker scouting out property, either an apartment or perhaps a house to live in for the next six years. look, chris christie doesn't

want to be involved in these kind of fights either at the national level or at the state level in terms of appearing at the same time with some of the republican candidates that might push him to the right and certainly could have been difficult for him to take on cory booker in the state. but he's got much bigger ambitions and certainly much bigger possibility or prospect. i don't think cory booker going from newark mayor was going to be able to run for president whereas chris christie already has that kind of platform where he could credibly do that. >> reince priebus knows of what we're speaking. the rnc chair has acknowledged the schism in the party. matter of fact, he did hit the week. this is priebus speaking to crowds in boston at the rnc's summer meeting. >> what does it mean to be a republican? not just i'm not a republican, i'm a conservative. i'm 23409 a republican, i'm a libertarian. i'm not, i'm not, i'm not. so here's the problem. the word under your name on the ballot says republican. and it's about time we as a party started fighting for what the meaning of that word is. and we're going to do it.

>> sam, does that square with chris christie saying wait a minute, the role of a party is to win? >> how do you do both? >> you got to find a certain party platform that works. i don't think at this juncture the republican party has done that. certainly newt gingrich when he suggested they put forward something proactive on health care was suggesting they needed to have a hopeful platform in some respects. if you look back from the end of the 2012 election today, the republican party and the gop has done everything to alienate the groups and they most needed to court. they've done voter suppression laws in many states, balked comprehensive immigration reform to alienate hispanic voters. now they're canceling debates both on nbc and cnn, but it also turns out on telemundo and cnn espanol that will also alienate voters. if you're going to build a party and going to build a brand, they're doing it wrong. you got to be more inclusive and have a platform that draws people in. i've yet to see thing center the

something from the republican party that does any of that. >> thank you, sam stein. thank you, jonathan allen. >> thank you. coming up, the republican national committee votes nbc and cnn out of the 2016 primary debates because of their hillary clinton projects. it turns out the rnc has never approved primary debates so it's promising not to do something it doesn't do anyway. so what's the point? also, we all saw the picture of rodeo clown with an obama mask. disrespectful? racist? not according to a lot of people on the right who say democrats just can't take a joke. and there certainly are enough bob filner accusers to choose from. and we've got the latest. a 67-year-old great grandmother school be here tonight to tell us what happened between her and the san diego mayor. and finally, it turns out, yes, all you alien conspiracy theorists, the government admit there's is after all an area 51. and no, it's not what you think. this is "hardball," the place for politics. from what happened

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hillary clinton's getting a little love from the bush family. yesterday, barbara bush, the daughter of former president george w. bush said she hopes hillary runs for president in 2016. the younger bush says the former secretary of state is "unbelievably accomplished, but she's not sure she would vote for her. backing in 2007, george w. bush himself singled out hillary clinton as the democratic candidate he liked best saying quote, i think she's a very formidable candidate and one of the interesting things that she brings is that she's been under pressure. she understands the klieg lights. at the same time, bush also said he thought the gop nominee who turned out to be john mccain would beat clinton. we'll be right back.

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it's time that we do what's right for our party and our candidates and by the way, it's the right thing to do for our voters. they're not going to get a real debate of substance if it's run by a network who wants to help out hillary clinton.

we're done putting up with this nonsense. there are plenty of other news outlets. we'll still reach voters. maybe more voters but cnn and nbc anchors will just have to watch on their competitors' networks. >> welcome back to "hardball." that was rnc chair reince priebus earlier today at the rnc's summer meeting in boston, delivering a spirited indictment on the liberal bias he says the media shows his republican donors and friends. now, today the republican national committee unanimously passed a resolution preventing itself from partnering with nbc or cnn for debates if the networks move forward with planned hillary clinton productions ahead of what they say is a likely 2016 clinton presidential run. but is this a smart move by priebus and the rnc? after all, hardly none of the tough questions in 2012 came from cnn or nbc and beyond that, many of the candidates' worst performances like rick perry and his oops moment were self inflicted wounds.

it would be a stretch to blame cnbc's john harwood for having asked that question. joining me is abby huntsman, co-host of the cycle on msnbc, and dnc communications director mo alithy. thank you both for being here. according to the autopsy report which conducted a thorough review of the party's performance and problems from gop insiders, the report said this. the republican party needs to stop talking to itself. we've become expert in how to provide ideological reinforcement to like-minded people but devastatingly, we've lost the ability to be persuasive with or welcoming to those who do not agree with us on every issue. mo, i've got to believe you would love it if the debates in 2016 featured limbaugh, beck and hannity as the sole interrogators. >> look, this is -- i don't understand what they're doing strategically, but man am i glad they're doing it.

this is a party that has pledged and said that it needs to expandity reach. but if you look at every single group that they -- that they lost so badly with in 2012, they keep poking them in the eye. and i think what's really going on here, i'm not inside reince priebus's head, but i think what's going on here is two things. one, this is great for their i think short-term fund-raising. there's a few things that conservative activists like more than to beat up on the liberal media. so this is going to be great for their program. >> plays well for the base. >> but it also limits debates. and by putting them on with rush limbaugh and sean hannity as the hosts, i actually think what they're doing is creating more opportunity for them to highlight some of the more fringe positions of the party which is not really what they ought to be doing. >> i thought that the autopsy

made a lot of sense and one of the things, i'm paraphrasing, one of the things in the autopsy said we need to get out of the echo chamber. i remember, and i've said this before, that on wednesday morning after the election there were folks that were just mystified by how obama had won because they were solely dependent on drudge, talk radio and fox news. it seems like in contrast to the autopsy finding from the rnc, they're going right back into that direction. >> that's the answer. let's get rush and sawn hannity to moderate debates. in all honesty, i kind of want that to happen. i think for many republicans out there that want the party to change, to move forward in a different direction, it has to hit rock bottom first. and maybe having sean hannity and rush limbaugh host a debate, ewould actually hit rock bottom and we would be able to move forward. but look, maybe mo would know this. the rnc doesn't actually have the authority to approve or to fund the debates. so they can say that all they want. they do have -- they can encourage candidates, obviously,

to boycott the debates, which would be effective. but i keep saying, look, if it is hillary clinton's miniseries, that is really going to put her over the edge in 2016, we really have no business being in the race to begin with. you think they have their annual summer meeting. how much time have they wasted talking about this when we have bigger fish to fry. why are we not focusing as you were saying on our message. why don't we have the courage to talk about things that we need to do to move forward? as chris christie said yesterday. >> let me give everyone a reminder, last cycle, republican candidates faced tough questions from moderators of all networks. here's one exchange between mitt romney and abc's george stephanopoulos. >> governor romney, do you believe that states have the right to ban contraception, or is that trumped by a constitutional right to privacy? >> george, this is an unusual topic that you raise. >> you went to harvard law school you know very well. >> has the supreme court decided that states do not have the right to the provide contraception?

>> yes, they have, 1965, griswold v connecticut. you've given two answers to the question. do you believe the supreme court should overturn it or not. >> do i believe the supreme court should. >> sometimes the wounds were self-inflicted. >> and i will tell you, it's three agencies of government when i get there that are gone. commerce, education, and the -- what's the third one there? let's see. >> five. >> so commerce, education and the -- >> epa? >> epa. there you go. >> let's talk -- let's talk -- >> seriously? is epa the one you were talking about? >> no, sir. no, sir. we were talking about the agencies of government. epa needs to be rebuilt. there is no doubt about that. >> but you can't name the third one? >> the third agency of government i would do away with

the education, the -- commerce, and let's see. i can't, the third one i can't. sorry. oops. >> abby, for reasons i think are obvious, you paid particularly close attention to all those debates back in that cycle. what i'm thinking is some of the high points for candidates came when they faced tough questions. i remember specifically when john king at the outset of one particular debate hammered newt gingrich and gingrich had a great response that brought the house down. it was about domestic issues. what would have happened to gingrich at that moment in the campaign had king not provided him that opportunity? >> i also think what would have happened to rick perry had that moment not happened. my stomach still cringes. >> what would have happened to us as voters. >> exactly. you know what? my stomach still cringes when i watch some of those clips. i just remember going to those debates with my dad. as you know, there was not a lot of substance at those debates. it was really a battle between who could be the most conservative, who could throw out the most red meat.

i remember my dad looking at me always on the end with his hands up like i don't know what to do. here is a guy that just left as ambassador to china. you get 30 seconds to talk about something substantial. so i understand reince priebus's point. let's have more control over the debates and less of those debates that really only makes us look bad. but there is a different way to go about that. let's not use hillary clinton as our way to fight this battle. >> and mo, you paid close attention as well, that some of the worst moments for the gop in that debate cycle came from audience reaction. and none of what we're addressing right now reins in that bad behavior. i'm making specific reference to when there was a soldier who was booed for having been gay and posing a question. >> yeah, and i got to believe that having the hannitys and limbaughs of the world isn't going to do anything to stem that. i mean, look, we all know what the republicans need to do. i hope they don't do it, but we all know what they need to do, they need to expand outreach and try to speak to more people and stop being so hostile. they've got policies and agenda

that are openly hostile to huge segments of the population. rather than try to limit the number of debates and call that outreach, they need to kind of change their message and change their agenda and policies to make them a little bit more inclusive. instead what people heard today was we're not going to talk to you because we don't like what you're doing. and that i don't think is what they ought to be doing. >> mo elleithee, thank you. abby huntsman, good to see you. up next, the cia acknowledges a secret they kept for decades about area 51 and ufos. and a programing note. you can listen to my radio program weekend mornings 9:00 a.m. sirius xm on potus the channel 124. this is "hardball." the place for politics. my asthma's under control.

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back to "hardball." time for the sideshow." the secret is out. a newly declassified document on the cia's history has publicly revealed the story behind the infamous nevada test site known as area 51. no, it doesn't mention roswell or the existence of extra terrestrial life but does confirm the location has been used since the 1950s to test and develop the military's most discreet aerial hardware, including the u-2 spy plane and the a-12 oxcart. next up, the obama administration has been installing solar panels on the roof of the white house this week making good on a 2010 promise to make at building more energy independent. this marks the second time that the white house has been retrofit with the energy saving devices. the first was 34 years ago when under then president jimmy carter who hoped to inspire an alternative energy revolution during the oil embargo of the '70s. his message, however, fell upon

deaf ears, and the solar panels were removed just seven years later by the reagan administration in 1986. here was president carter describing his reaction to that from the documentary "a road not taken." >> i was disappointed, somewhat angry when i saw that president reagan had taken this symbolic step of retreating from the commitment to renewable energy. >> but the story didn't end there. the film follows those very solar panels, 32 in all, after they were salvaged by unity college in maine where they helped power the school cafeteria. and when they reached the end of their useful life there, some of them went on a road trip with the film makers to atlanta. the filmmakers even used them to heat the water in their own bathtub before donating them to

the carter presidential library. and finally, jennifer garner has hinted to "allure" magazine that her husband again affleck may be interested in seeking elective office. the "argo" star is no stranger to politics. he campaigned for john kerry back in 2004. but he's always been coy when it comes to his own political ambitions. listen to what affleck had to say about that in 2004 at the democratic national convention. >> as a person, i'm much more interested in what an actor has to say about something substantial and important than who they're dating or what clothes they're wearing or some other asinine insignificant aspect of their life. >> have you ever thought of crossing the line yourself? >> i'd like to -- i'd like your job, frankly. so i'm waiting for you to move on. >> thank you very much, ben. now i'll be nice to you. >> sorry, ben, i don't think anybody's going to replace chris anytime soon. up next, a lot of big names on the right are rushing to the defense of that rodeo clown, the one who wore an obama mask at the missouri state fair. you're watching "hardball," the place for politics.

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i'm craig melvin. here is what is happening right now. 800 homes are being evacuated in idaho's resort town of sun valley as fast-moving wildfire spreads. the flames have already torched 85 square miles. at least 60 people were killed in cairo in clashes between pro-morsi protesters and security forces today. the muslim brotherhood called it a day of rage. and a pennsylvania judge ruled that the state cannot enforce its strict voter id law until after the court decides on whether the law is constitutional. back to "hardball." welcome back to "hardball."

earlier this week, we showed you some shocking video from the missouri state fair. a clown dressed in an obama mask got jeered by the crowd as the rodeo announcer gleefully taunted, we're going to stomp obama now. >> let me tell these people who we got helping, obama is going to have to just stay there. obama, watch out for those bulls. >> hey, i know i'm a clown. he just running around acting like one, doesn't know he is one. are you ready? obama, they're coming for you this time. whoo. >> as soon as this fool comes out, obama, don't you move. he's going to get you, get you, get you, get you! >> one person in the crowd compared it to an effigy at a klan rally. very quickly, there was bipartisan condemnation, and the ringleader clown who talked about, quote, getting obama, was permanently banned by fair officials. while both those things are to

be expected given the offensive display, what you might be surprised by is the strong reaction from the right. sean hannity, rush limbaugh and glenn beck have all rallied to the defense of the clown. a support group on facebook popped up and some members of congress chimed in. steve stockman released a statement saying "liberals want to the crush dissent by isolating and polarizing anyone who questions obama even if it's a clown with a harmless gag, the idea to create a state of fear and make people afraid to trivialize obama. no one tried to personally destroy the clown who wore a george herbert walker bush mask. steve king tweeted mr. president, invite the rodeo clown to the white house for a beer summit. take the temperature down. have a laugh. relax. it's not about race. jonathan capehart is an msnpc political analyst and opinion writer at "the washington post." philip rutger is white house correspondent for "the post." he just returned from the missouri state fair. philip, i know you were there on wednesday. what did you find?

>> you know, i went there hoping to kind of hear what people thought about what happened at the fair at that rodeo. i wasn't sure what i would find. i ended up talking to about a dozen people there at the fair. all of them were in agreement they felt the media had overblown this. they didn't see anything racist or disrespectful about the act at the rodeo. i started talking to some of these people and they really had very strong feelings about president obama. >> by way of example, you interviewed one farmer who said quote, i've got no respect for him, why he's destroyed this country. how much freedom have we lost? i don't care whether it's a black man in office but we have to have a true blooded american. i think he's muslim and trying to destroy the country, catering to the muslim brotherhood in egypt. he went on to tell you he goes to a website that compares michelle obama to a monkey. he said, quote, they have the same expression. the media makes it all hate. i don't hate a black person. it's just funny. i think this are probably 25

internet, you know, falsehoods in that one quote alone. >> yeah. it was really startling to hear him say all of that. and he really believes all that. not only does he believe those falsehoods about the president but doesn't see anything racist in what he's saying or anything even disrespectful or inappropriate about what he feels about the president. >> okay. jonathan, it's august. it's end of summer. i could go to many a boardwalk tonight i think and buy an obama mask. it's not the mask itself that makes this racially tinged. am i right? >> right. it's not the mask. it's what's being said and it's how the mask is being used. i mean, the guy was wearing a mask. the clown was wearing a mask. but the clown was also being propped up or looked like he had a broomstick or a broom handle, either he was leaning on it or it was coming from behind him. i don't know if you can see that in the video. you put all that together, what was being said, how the president is being portrayed, you do have a racially tinged

moment there. and look, it's not just me and other people saying that it -- other african-americans saying it was racially tinged. the person who took the video is a white man who has been on our air and who said i think you said in the intro, he felt like he was at a klan rally. when someone who is sitting there feels so strongly about in this that he took out his camera phone to videotape it to make sure that he had evidence that this happened and to share it with the world, then you know you have a problem. and phillip, i just want to congratulate you and commend you on a fantastic story. >> thank you. >> i think sometimes when people hear charges of racism or the president being viewed in a racist light, that there are a lot of people, particularly on the right who dismiss it, saying oh, you're playing the race card just by bringing it up. but that quote that michael read puts out there for all to see just how problematic this.

>> there's an element of in that swayed me because when i heard the story that there was someone working in this capacity wearing an obama mask, that didn't sound inherently racist to me. but fellowship, phillip, your coverage does discuss this. the guy who shot the video says that someone came out and played with the lips of the clown. right? >> that's right. and you know, this portion was not on the piece of video that he had. but he said that this happened during the rodeo and he saw that as a clearly kind of plainly racist act there. >> all right. rush limbaugh maybe no surprise threw his support behind the clown and even blamed president obama for diminishing the office by going on the tonight show, and of course he bashed the so-called liberal media response to what had happened. >> this is no different than those countries reacting freakishly when there were cartoons of the prophet muhammad. that is exactly what this is. you know, you people on the left, who the hell do you think you are? you can't laugh. you can't take a joke. you can't take a punch. you can't take anything.

one little thing that you don't like and this clown can never work. >> jonathan, i used the reference to "the tonight show" because he also talked about the president going on the "tonight show." what distinguishes the rodeo incident from a late night comedian poking fun at the president? >> yes, it's all about context here. rush limbaugh rails against the liberal media, rails against the president all the time and even rails against me from time to time. if i say something that offends him which is usually every time. the issue here is that rush limbaugh and sean hannity and glenn beck so have the right and the republican party under its spell that any time they say something, you know, they hurl down thunderbolts against something, the rest of the party, it either rallies

conservatives to their side and makes people feel like what they feel and what they think is appropriate, but it also makes people in the building behind me when they're here cower in fear so that when you need leaders to step up and stay what has happened is wrong, what has happened should not happen again. they don't say anything. >> well, meanwhile you mentioned glenn beck. he stood up for the brave artistry of rodeo clowns everywhere. watch. >> it shows how afraid this administration is. they are afraid literally of a rodeo clown. they can't afford to have anybody critical of the president. you know, people burn books and we had the mccarthy era where you were silenced because you were a communist. i got news for you, you may not see rodeo clowns as art or entertainment, but it is. this is an artist. a very brave artist, believe it or not, rodeo clowns. they could get mauled by a bull at any time. >> jonathan, i didn't like the disrespect shown to george w. bush.

i thought all that sickness and hatred was beneath the dignity of the office at a minimum. i feel the same way about this. >> yeah, i mean, look, again, it's about the context. and when you make fun of george bush, when people made fun of george bush, it was about his intelligence or what have you. when you make fun of president obama, and sure we're not saying that you can't criticize -- no one can criticize the president, or that every criticism against the president is racist or racial. but when you do what the rodeo clown did and what they did at that event, there's a whole other historical context that must be paid attention to. and that must be taken into account. >> i'll make it easy for you. if you play with the lips and put a broom up its butt, you got a problem. >> exactly. >> thank you. fellowship. thank you, jonathan capehart. up next, another woman has accused san diego's mayor of unwanted sexual advances. the 16th woman to do so and she joins us next. this is "hardball," the place for politics.

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he would come in and kiss me on the lips, and i'd have to squirm to get away. >> he got very close to me, and he ran his finger up my cheek like this. and he whispered to me, do you have a man in your life? >> i was placed in the filner head lock and moved around as a rag doll while he whispered sexual comments in my ear. >> we're back. those are just some of the 16 women who have accused san diego mayor bob filner of inappropriate contact and sexual harassment. calls for him to step down from both local and national leaders continue. yesterday, house democratic leader nancy pelosi tweeted mayor filner is out of rehab. he should be out of the mayor's office. should not subject san diegans to pain and expense of a recall. california senator barbara boxer made a personal appeal to the mayor in an open letter that reads in part "we've known each other for a long time. so i'm speaking to you now on a personal and professional level and asking you to step down as mayor and get the help you need as a private citizen." the latest woman to come forward, peggy shannon, a great

grandmother who works at the senior citizens service desk at the san diego city hall accused mayor filner of sexual harassment. joins me with her attorney gloria allred. mrs. shannon, give us the context in which the mayor told you that he could, quote/unquote, go eight hours. >> well, i came up to the desk and leaned over the desk and took my hands and says, i think i could go eight hours. and i looked at him and said, are you kidding? and he says no. i'm sure i can go eight hours. i was appalled. it was very shocking to me that he would think that he could say something like that to me. >> and there had been bad behavior on his part prior to this? >> correct. he had -- >> i'm sorry? >> he had come up to me many times and taken my hand and asked when we could get together on the weekend, whether saturday

or sunday, and this went on for months. >> after the eight-hour comment, i know that you told your supervisor and a co-worker what he had done, what he had said. was there any response from them? he had done, what he had said. was there any response from them? did the system begin, at least, to work when you made the report? >> well, they were kind of surprised that he had said that. i didn't go on about how many times he had done it, until a little while later. >> as far as you knew, were other women in the loop? was it commonly known, this guy is handsy or worse? >> no, at that time, i didn't know anything about it. i didn't know that there were other women that had gone through what i was going through. >> and why -- for those who would want to know, well, what i didn't you immediately come forward or make a bigger deal of it, what was going through your mind? >> i was kind of humiliated and

i have to say that i didn't know what to do. i really didn't know what to do. i just wanted to come to work and do my job and it took a while, until these other women came forward, for me to finally come forward and validate what they were saying. >> gloria allred, this guy would seem to be a serial offender at this point. i mean, i'm almost losing track of the number of individuals who have come forward. how far will this go? >> well, we have also filed the only sexual harassment lawsuit, michael, against mayor filner. now, on behalf of our client, irene mccormack jackson, who was the first to come forward and publicly identify herself as the victim of mayor filner, and since then, that has inspired and encouraged others who allege that they are victims of mayor filner to also come forward with the total, today, i think up to about 15 or maybe even 16, who publicly come forward. and that doesn't include those who have contacted me, but who

for whatever reason, have decided not to come forward or at least not to come forward yet. so the point is that mayor filner appears to think that women are fair game. it's particularly serious where the women are employees in city hall, because as to peggy shannon, who i might add, i give so much credit to, because she has demonstrated enormous courage in coming forward, that she also alleges that the mayor, that she was coming out of city hall one day, and she was coming in, grabbed her, hugged her, and kissed her right on the lips. now, women who work, and all women, are entitled to respect, they are entitled to dignity. they're not there to be the mayor's playthings. and the city of san diego, the city hall of san diego, should not be used as the mayor's sexual playground, to have women anytime he wants do whatever he wants. >> mrs. shannon, what did you do when you kissed you on the lips? >> i walked away from him.

i didn't say anything. i was in shock. i just went and got in my car and went home and cried for two hours. >> and michael, he says that he can go eight hours. we just want him to go. we don't care how long he can go. we just want him to go, as soon as possible. and that means resigning as mayor of san diego. he is a disgrace and he has brought shame upon this city hall and the people of san diego. >> you know, i'm not a shrink, obviously, i'm not qualified to say this, but there's a part of me that wonders if he's at home watching "hardball" right now and just loving this. there are some weiner-like characteristics, it seems, to this guy, where he'd rather be in the spotlight getting horrific publicity than not be in the spotlight at all. deplore a ten-second response. >> he needs to put the people of san diego first. and they've shown in every single poll, they want him out. the entire city council of san diego city wants him out, as well as both of our united states senators, senator

feinstein and senator boxer. i mean, it's ridiculous. >> gloria allred, thank you, as always. peggy shannon, thank you as well. we'll be right back right after this. which is deposited in your fidelity account. is that it? actually... there's no annual fee and no limits on rewards. and with the fidelity cash management account debit card, you get reimbursed for all atm fees. is that it? oh, this guy, too. turn more of the money you spend into money you invest. it's everyday reinvesting for your personal economy. with diabetes, it's tough to keep life balanced. i don't always have time to eat like i should. and the more i focus on everything else, the less time i have to take care of me. that's why i like glucerna shakes. they have slowly digestible carbs to help minimize blood sugar spikes. glucerna products help me keep everything balanced. [ golf clubs clanking ] [ husband ] i'm good! well, almost everything. [ male announcer ] glucerna. delicious shakes and bars.

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let me finish tonight with a question. are you ready for some football? i'm not talking about nfl. i mean epl, as in english premiere league? see, tomorrow english futbol, soccer to us in the states, is finally coming to the states. nbc has made a significant investment to bring top-flight

soccer to the united states for the next three years. a match tomorrow between liverpool and stoke city will commence the first of 380 regular-season games that the nbc sports group will offer on a multitude of platforms. we're talking more than 1,600 hours of annual programming. maybe you've seen jason sudeikis starring in a hilarious video promoting this launch, which already has more than 4 million youtube views. >> my name is ted lasso. i'm new head coach for tottenham spurs. >> there have been occasions in the past when some have argued that the u.s. was at a tipping point and about to be smitten over soccer. this time, i think it's going to be different. friend ll lly matches between premiere league teams have drawn

huge crowds in the united states. wherever i go, we see merchandise being worn by fans of all ages, and more kids are playing soccer here than ever before. another factor might be the shifting demographics of the country, which make us more like fans who have made this the most popular sport in the world. so here are a couple of the basics to get you started. the premiere league features 20 teams who play each other stwis in a season, once at home and once away. so there's parody in scheduling in the season that runs from august to may. teams get three points for a win, one for a tie. there's no super bowl. and whichever has the most points at the end of the year wins the championship. the top finishing teams get to go on and compete in the european champion's league, and the bottom three teams, they're essentially sent to the minor leagues. get used to hearing names like wayne rooney, gareth bail, and robin van percy. they've also got some colorful owners. their jerry jones, he's called roman abromovich and he owns